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Zelenskyy says Russia preparing to deploy 30,000 more North Korean troops, missile launchers

By The South Asia Times

SEOUL - Russia is preparing to deploy an additional 30,000 North Korean troops to support its war against Ukraine, while Pyongyang is also planning to send more ballistic missile launchers to Moscow, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, according to Yonhap News Agency.

In a post on X summarizing his nightly video address, Zelenskyy said Russia had been preparing since June to receive the troops in the Voronezh region, near Ukraine's border.

"Russia wants to receive another 30,000 troops from North Korea. Since June, preparations have been under way in Russia's Voronezh region to receive them," Zelenskyy wrote.

He also claimed that North Korea was preparing to transfer additional launchers for ballistic missiles to Russia.

Zelenskyy warned that the growing military cooperation between Moscow and Pyongyang posed a broader regional security threat beyond the war in Ukraine.

"This is a threat not only to Ukraine. Russia is helping North Korea learn how to wage war, improve its weapons and gain real combat experience in using them," he said.

"All of this is a threat to everyone in Asia who is within range of North Korean missiles," he added.

The Ukrainian leader's remarks came after North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui returned from a four-day visit to Moscow last week, where she met Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. The visit fueled speculation that preparations are underway for a future visit by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to Russia.

Military ties between Moscow and Pyongyang have deepened since Putin and Kim signed a mutual defense pact in June 2024. According to Yonhap, North Korea first deployed troops to Russia's border regions in October 2024 to support Moscow's military campaign.

The South Korean news agency reported that Pyongyang is believed to have sent around 20,000 combat troops and military engineers to Russia's Kursk region, with an estimated 14,000 currently deployed near the front lines.

Russia and North Korea have not publicly confirmed Zelenskyy's latest claims. Ukraine's assertions could not be independently verified.